Karin Musier-Forsyth, Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry and Ohio Eminent Scholar, and Jane Jackman, Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry and Director of the Ohio State Biochemistry Program, co-direct the National Institutes of Health Predoctoral Training grant in Cellular, Molecular, and Biochemical Sciences Program (CMBP) at Ohio State. Forty one faculty members from four related molecular life sciences graduate programs - Microbiology; Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology; Molecular Genetics; and the Ohio State Biochemistry Program - participate in CMBP teaching and training activities.
This specialized training program, which began with the first round of funding in 2011 and is now in its third 5-year period, is designed to attract top-tier graduate students, prepare them for diverse life-sciences research careers, including in academia, government or industry, and advance research pursuits in areas related to biomolecular structure & dynamics, cell biology and trafficking, gene regulation, RNA biology & chemistry, molecular medicine, and pathogens & viruses.
The CMBP program supports 10 graduate student trainee slots per year using a combination of Federal and University Matching Funds. Musier-Forsyth and Jackman credit the substantial institutional support for interdisciplinary graduate training provided by the Colleges and the Graduate School with creating ideal conditions for the sustained success of this program. The Ohio State University recently recognized CMBP’s achievements by awarding the program Directors the 2019-2020 Diversity Enhancement Award. The award recognized “activities (to) promote diversity and support a culture that embraces and exhibits inclusive excellence, community and openness”.